PIL want to move to Australia

[PILinOz]

I posted this on the living overseas board but I don't think it's particularly active so reposting here for traffic.

My parents in law have just come back from visiting their daughter, her husband and kids in Melbourne. They have told us that due to the health benefits of living in a warmer climate they want to move over there permanently and are seriously looking into making it happen.
We are very close to them and my kids absolutely adore them. Whenever they leave to visit, usually for a few months at a time, my kids are incredibly upset and miss them terribly. If PIL move away permanently they will be absolutely devastated.

They are in their late 60s and financially comfortable. They suffer from some health conditions. How realistic is it that they would be granted permanent residency?

They are in their late 60s and financially comfortable. They suffer from some health conditions. How realistic is it that they would be granted permanent residency?

To me, it seems unlikely.

I know two families who moved to Australia and both moved back to the UK after a few years. It wasn't what they thought it was (UK with better weather). The people I know who moved there and stayed there went there as single people at a young age
I've known loads that have gone out, some stayed, (Sil in particular) some came back, some where kicked out (serves you right nephew)! However I really think from the PIL POV it is better to give it a go and it may or may not work rather than not try and it doesn't work out!

But you can't just "give it a go" if you've not been granted the correct visa. I think if they are comfortably off they should just visit for extended periods.

Just out of interest, for those of you who live in Melbourne, is property very expensive? PIL say that all the houses are big fancy 5 bed detached and that you cannot get anything decent for under £400k ( this was a few years back right enough so it's probably gone up now) is that right? Surely not? I was trying to say that surely students and those in lower paid jobs can't afford that and have to live somewhere? Where are all the flats and 2bed semis? Where do the people on min wage live?

But you can't just "give it a go" if you've not been granted the correct visa. I think if they are comfortably off they should just visit for extended periods. Of course not but we don't know PIL exact circumstances. Some people have 'giving it a go',my best mate for example and also DH's mate had a try. Didn't work out but for both my SIL's it did. Sure visas are an issue but we don't know anything about PIL except they have been to Melbourne!

It is expensive in Australia to live. You pay for the area you live in. So, a nice area is expensive regardless if it is a large house or a 2 bedroom unit.

Many people on low incomes or students are living in share accommodation or living in areas that are cheaper. So, from memory (it’s been a long time for me) cheaper areas are the western suburbs. Can be a bit rough out there though. Some suburbs should be avoided but your SIL would know.

I live in Australia (not Melbs) and know people who have moved here at all ages. I moved in my 40s. At their age the visa is very expensive, or there is a very long wait (over 30 years I think). But if they can pay it and have enough family there, and have sufficient income they may well get a visa. Melbourne weather is pretty cool (too cold for me) but still better than the UK. Housing is expensive, its a big city after all, but there absolutely are apartments and cheaper, less desirable areas if you are less well off.

If 50% of their children are in Australia they can apply for PR. It would be easier for them given that Medicare is used in UK and it sort of transfers to Australia (even if not PR).

The cost per parent/person is about $50 K AUD.

Melbourne is cold but much better than the UK, much less cold (as I've heard from people that come from there).

We live 25kms from Melbourne CBD - still only about 50 minutes on the train and a very ordinary house - an older 3 bed house in mostly original condition is around a million Australian dollars - if you go closer in the prices go up. It is not so much the house but the land is pricey and if you have something new where we live then you pay 1.5 million. Melbourne is not quite as expensive as Sydney but it is getting very pricey. It is always named as one of the most expensive cities in the world after New York, London, Singapore, Sydney etc We have a rental crisis of monumental proportions too at the moment - low income families/people are priced out of the rental and housing market. Interest rate hikes mean both mortgages and rents have gone up - our of the reach of ordinary earners unfortunately.

It also differs slightly where in Melbourne you want to live - out West and North have slightly cheaper housing and more new estates to live in but poorer transport links and facilities. You would be very car dependent.

Well, we know that they are in their late 60s, with some health problems. Not quite the profile Aus is currently looking to import.

Well, we know that they are in their late 60s, with some health problems. Not quite the profile Aus is currently looking to import.
Maybe not, but we know FA about their financial situation.
Let them crack on and find out for themselves if they are wanted or not.

Not sure if it's really that relevant, but I can understand it a bit more if you're from the North of England/ Scotland rather than the South.

I lived in Melbourne for a year and the winter was similar to the UK. The summers were lovely though. And definitely never much below ten degrees, ever.

Overall so much better. It's not always hot, but overall a million times better (as are most places!)

It's probably lots of thing, but most of all an adventure

We know they are "comfortably off". There are a limited number of visas for parents wanting PR, and there is a mult-year waiting list, from what I recall. Older people with some existing health problems are not top of the list in desirable imports for a country not wanting to overburden its healthcare system, which is already struggling.

How cold is it in Australia in the winter?
I'm not sur but my ozzie BIL stayed with us in October and you would have sworn he had just landed in the North Pole in just his undies! Such a show aboy being cold!!

We have a lovely Autumn day here today going for a top of 24 degrees - cool enough overnight and have had a relatively mild Summer. Weather is great if you dont like the heat of Perth or the humidity of Qld. Very much a Mediterranean feel of warm Summers but slightly cooler Winters. You definitely need a Winter coat in Melbourne but it doesnt have to be coat to deal with minus temperatures like in parts of the UK.

Real estate is expensive in Melbourne and there is a strong differentiation between different suburbs and areas. Presumably your p-i-l will want to live close by their daughter. Hopefully that will be somewhere with good train or tram links. They can start looking at realestate.com.au to get an idea of costs to rent or buy in particular areas. Inner city is more expensive than outer suburbs, east is more posh than west (with some exceptions). Traffic and congestion is increasing.

Melbourne from Nov to Apr (inclusive) has an average daily temperature in the 20s celsius though the extremes would be 14 to 34 and about four days in Feb being 40 degrees. Overnight temperatures drop to ave 10-14 during those six months with a few low nights dropping to 5 at coldest. Rain is between 46 - 60 mm per month in those warmer months.

For the other half of the year the average daily highs range from 13 to 20 with June, July and August the lowest. Over night the temperature averages 6 - 10 degrees with the extremes being in July and August sometimes as low as -1. Rain in the winter averages 47 - 66 mm per month.

There are many days with no rain and some days with 30mm in one day. There are mostly clear skies and some overcast or cloudy days. If the day has been hot the night cools down due to Melbourne being on the sea. Within an hour of Melbourne are cooler, greener places near the coast or in the mountains or rolling hills. Houses range from 600,000 Aus. to 2,000,000 in the inner or outer suburbs for a two or three bed flat or house depending on where exactly.
The best of both worlds would be to share their time between the UK and Aus. They could visit UK every year or two for four months. They could stay in Aus. for an extended visit again too. They only get one life and they can always move back. An option could be to keep their house and rent it out??

I live in Melbourne too and love it. Yes, the weather isn’t like Perth or Qld (I’ve lived in Perth too), but it’s a fabulous city with so much going on and probably the most ‘European’ feeling city in Australia. Despite what you read about Australia on here sometimes, there’s lots of theatre, art galleries, ballet, film festivals, music etc etc. The food scene is also fab.

We have fairly mild winters, by UK standards, but we can drive up to the mountains for snow if we feel like it (I rarely do!). People are out doing sport, cycling, walking etc in winter because it’s pretty mild and we don’t tend to get the really long spells of heatwaves that other parts get in summer, although they do happen. It was 37 on Saturday here and the National parks were closed due to the extreme fire danger, but as the poster above says, it’s going to be 24 today and definitely feeling autumnal. I have a down jacket and never need more than that and winter is much shorter and brighter than the UK.

i can certainly understand why your pils would want to come here (I’m also nearly 60, but have been a citizen for 20 years), but I think it’ll be a long hard/expensive road for them. They should consider what many of my friends parents do and come for 3 months a year and if they want to extend their visit, pop over to NZ or Asia and get a new visitor visa for another 3 months. They won’t be able to work and their only access to Medicare would be through the reciprocal healthcare arrangement, but lots of people come with good comprehensive medical insurance, so accessing private healthcare is fairly easy.
One thing they should consider very carefully is leaving friends behind (as well as you, obviously). It’s much, much harder to make friends at our age than when we had young children. It can feel very isolating if you don’t make an effort to go out and join in with things. One thing I and many of my expat/immigrant friends have found is that Australians are very friendly in a superficial way, but it can be very hard to develop deep friendships. I have some amazing Aussie friends now, but it was tough to start with. Many of us say that Brits are more open and there is definitely a difference between us despite a common language. If your pils are outgoing they’ll find it easier, but being here for three months is not the same as living here!

I go back to the UK twice a year, which I love doing, but it’s very expensive to do and yes, housing is really expensive depending on where you want to live. Grocery shopping costs more, but bizarrely, eating out really doesn’t. Petrol is cheaper as are energy prices (comparing with my friends and family in UK anyway).
I think if they’re determined to do it, they’ll probably find a way, but it won’t be easy. I feel for you, it’s the worst bit about being on the other side of the world and something you do get used to even if it’s sad at times.

Here's a link to the relevant visas:

immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/aged-parent-804

Quite a bit of catastrophising on this thread.

The last thunderstorm asthma event in Melbourne was 2016. It was horrible but not very common at all. BOM gives daily warnings on the possibility.

Polluted? Not recognising this in the general sense of fumes and smog. If there's a bush fire, that's another story. Like other Australian cities Melbourne compares well to other world wide.

Grey? Dismal? Well last winter was a shocker but generally there are lots of sunny days in the winter, which gives a different feel to it. I lived in the UK for 50+ years so I know what I'm on about.
For any season in Melbourne you'd need the same clothing you would wear in London.

Cold houses? Never been in one so far.

Weather is not a terribly good reason to live anywhere, certainly not why I moved here, but the idea go going back to UK weather gives me pause for thought, so I've got used to it.

Housing is expensive and there's some good information upthread. Definitely rent out the UK house initially.

Jeez, people are writing essays about temperatures. Do you think the pil actually care!
Also the point is being missed . The op wants them around for her kids. I'm not sure she wants her thread hijacked with average rainfall!

Geographically speaking Melbourne is vast, it has one of the biggest footprints of any city in the world.

Low income working families are often in new developments on the city fringes, which is about the only place you could get a huge 5 bedder for 400,000 pounds. The downside is long distances to travel, and poor infrastructure.

As for the climate, it's very very rare for the daily temperature to stay under 10 degrees and that really cold patch of winter is quite short. We never, ever get snow in the city..

Surely it makes more sense just for them to visit for three months every UK winter/Australian summer?

They could even buy a small flat, or contribute towards their daughter buying a new, bigger house with a parent-in-law flat.

That way they could see their daughter regularly, really get a chance to know their grandchildren, and not worry so much about things like visas. They can get catastrophic health care insurance and, if something longer-term happens (like cancer, e.g.), fly back to the UK.